Homebase pricing: free plan, per-location costs, payroll add-on, and buyer questions
Homebase publishes its pricing, and it starts at free. The Basic plan gives one location with up to 10 employees scheduling and time tracking at no cost, no credit card required. Paid plans run from $30 to $120 per location per month on monthly billing, or $24 to $96 billed annually, with unlimited employees and payroll sold as a separate add-on. For single-location small businesses, the math is simple and usually favorable.
The pricing gets more complicated at multiple locations and once payroll is added. The per-location model that keeps a single restaurant cheap adds up for a five-location franchise, and the payroll add-on at $49 per month plus $6 per employee adds real cost to a plan called 'All-in-One'. This breakdown walks through the math for each scenario, checked against Homebase's public pricing page in September 2026.
Homebase pricing overview: what the free plan includes and where paid plans start
How much does Homebase cost?
Homebase costs $0 to $120 per location per month on monthly billing, or $24 to $96 per location billed annually, with unlimited employees on paid plans. Payroll is extra at $49 a month plus $6 per employee paid. Cost scales with locations, not headcount, except for payroll.
Prices verified Sep 2026. Sources: Homebase pricing page, Workstream: Homebase pricing 2026 (annual rates cross-check).
Homebase uses a per-location pricing model that is unique in the scheduling and HR software market. While competitors like When I Work and Deputy charge per user, Homebase charges per location regardless of how many employees work there. This structural difference makes Homebase exceptionally affordable for single-location businesses with large teams and increasingly expensive for multi-location businesses with smaller teams per site.
The free Basic plan covers basic scheduling and time tracking for one location with up to 10 employees. It is not a trial: it is a permanent free tier with no credit card and no time limit. For very small businesses with no software budget, it replaces paper timesheets and spreadsheet schedules right away. Over 100,000 businesses use Homebase according to the company's website, and many start here.
Paid plans add features in steps. Essentials at $30 ($24 annual) adds advanced scheduling, advanced time tracking, team communication and unlimited employees. Plus at $70 ($56 annual) adds an AI scheduling assistant, PTO controls, departments and permissions. All-in-One at $120 ($96 annual) adds onboarding, labor cost management and HR and compliance tools. Each step adds useful features, but the All-in-One name is misleading because payroll is a separate add-on.
Homebase Payroll costs $49 per month plus $6 per employee paid. For a 25-employee business, payroll adds $199 per month. On All-in-One, the total becomes $319 per location per month on monthly billing, or $295 with the plan billed annually. That is still affordable for a single location, but the gap between the $120 headline price and the all-in figure is worth knowing before you commit.
| Plan | Price | Billing unit | What's included |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | $0 | per location per month; 1 location, up to 10 employees | Basic scheduling, basic time tracking and point-of-sale integration. |
| Essentials | $30/location/mo monthly, or $24/location/mo billed annually | per location per month, unlimited employees | Advanced scheduling, advanced time tracking and team communication. |
| Plus | $70/location/mo monthly, or $56/location/mo billed annually | per location per month, unlimited employees | AI scheduling assistant, PTO and time-off controls, departments and permissions; promo includes 6 months of free payroll. |
| All-in-One | $120/location/mo monthly, or $96/location/mo billed annually | per location per month, unlimited employees | Adds employee onboarding, labor cost management and HR and compliance tools. |
| Payroll add-on | $49/mo + $6 per employee paid | per month plus per employee paid | Full-service payroll fed by Homebase timesheets; sold on top of any plan. |
What Homebase costs for 10, 50 and 200 employees
| Plan | 10 employees | 50 employees | 200 employees |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-in-One, 1 location (annual billing) | $96 | $96 | $96 |
| All-in-One + payroll, 1 location (annual) | $205 | $445 | $1,345 |
| Essentials, 1 location (annual billing) | $24 | $24 | $24 |
Monthly cost for one location in USD; multiply plan fees by location count. Payroll math uses $49 + $6 per employee paid.
Prices verified Sep 2026. Sources: Homebase pricing page, Workstream: Homebase pricing 2026 (annual rates cross-check).
Homebase pricing overview: what the free plan includes and where paid plans start
For single-location businesses with 10 or fewer employees and stable teams, the free Basic plan may be enough. Larger single-location teams can start on Essentials at $30 per month ($24 billed annually), which removes the employee cap. Start as low as you can and upgrade only when you hit a specific feature limit; upgrading does not require a data migration.
For businesses that hire regularly and want to digitize onboarding paperwork, All-in-One at $120 per location per month ($96 billed annually) is the sweet spot. The onboarding workflows, labor cost management and compliance tools justify the premium over Plus for businesses with 5 or more new hires a year. Add payroll only if the time-to-payroll integration is worth its $49 base plus $6 per employee compared with your current payroll provider.
Homebase Basic (Free) — what it includes and who it fits
Basic is Homebase's permanent free tier, covering basic scheduling, basic time tracking and POS integration with systems such as Square, Clover and Toast. It supports one location with up to 10 employees. For a small business owner with a handful of hourly workers on paper timesheets or spreadsheets, it is a complete starting point. You outgrow it when you pass 10 employees or need advanced scheduling, labor cost controls or onboarding, which most growing businesses do within months.
Homebase Essentials — what changes and why it matters
Essentials at $30 per location per month ($24 billed annually) removes the 10-employee cap and adds advanced scheduling, advanced time tracking and team communication. This is the right tier for a single location that has outgrown Basic but does not need PTO controls, departments or onboarding. It is the cheapest way to run Homebase for a large team at one site.
Homebase Plus — labor cost controls for margin-conscious businesses
Plus at $70 per location per month ($56 billed annually) adds an AI scheduling assistant, PTO and time-off controls, departments and role-based permissions. For restaurants, retail stores and service businesses with several roles and managers, the permissions and time-off controls cut admin work. The $40 monthly premium over Essentials ($32 on annual billing) makes sense once you have multiple departments or frequent time-off requests.
Homebase All-in-One — onboarding and compliance for growing teams
All-in-One at $120 per location per month ($96 billed annually) adds employee onboarding with digital paperwork, labor cost management and HR and compliance tools. For businesses that hire 5 or more people a year, digital onboarding alone saves 30 to 60 minutes per new hire and keeps compliance documents complete. The compliance tools provide alerts and document storage, which help but do not replace legal advice on complex employment matters. A 14-day free trial of All-in-One needs no credit card.
Homebase plan breakdown: Basic vs Essentials vs Plus vs All-in-One
Homebase vs When I Work on price
When I Work charges per user: $2.50, $5 or $8 per user per month on Essentials, Pro and Premium, plus $1.50 to $2 per user for time tracking. For a single-location restaurant with 40 employees, Homebase All-in-One costs $120 per month while When I Work Pro with time tracking costs $280, so Homebase saves $160. For a 5-location business with 10 employees per site (50 total), Homebase All-in-One costs $600 per month while When I Work Pro with time tracking costs $350, so When I Work saves $250. Match the pricing model to your business structure.
Homebase vs Deputy on price
Deputy charges per user: $5, $6.50 or $9 per user per month on Lite, Core and Pro billed annually, with deeper scheduling features such as auto-scheduling, demand forecasting and break compliance on Core. For a 40-employee single-location business, Homebase All-in-One at $96 billed annually beats Deputy Core at $260. But Deputy's scheduling depth, including auto-scheduling, labor forecasting and compliance tools, goes well beyond Homebase. Businesses that need that sophistication may get more value from Deputy despite the higher total cost.
Homebase vs Gusto for small business payroll
Homebase Payroll ($49 base plus $6 per employee paid) sits in the same price range as Gusto's entry payroll plan. The difference is focus. Homebase Payroll's advantage is the time-to-payroll workflow: timesheets flow directly into payroll without data transfer. Gusto's advantage is payroll and benefits depth, including contractor payments, health insurance administration, 401(k) management and broader multi-state compliance. If scheduling is your main need and payroll is secondary, Homebase integrates better. If payroll and benefits come first, Gusto is the more capable platform.
Homebase pricing buyer checklist: what to verify before committing
Start with the free plan and test before upgrading
The free Basic plan and the 14-day All-in-One trial are enough to evaluate Homebase properly. Build your schedule for the coming week, have employees download the app and clock in for at least one full pay period, and see whether Basic covers your needs. Basic is capped at one location and 10 employees, so larger teams should use the trial to test the paid features they would actually buy.
Calculate multi-location total cost before committing
If you have multiple locations, calculate the total monthly cost across all locations on each plan tier. Compare this total against When I Work and Deputy using your total employee count. For 4 or more locations, the per-location model may be more expensive than per-user alternatives. Run the math before signing up — the per-location pricing that saves money at one location can cost you significantly more at five.
Compare Homebase Payroll against your current provider before adding it
Compare the Homebase Payroll cost ($49 base plus $6 per employee paid) with your current payroll provider. Factor in the time saved by the time-to-payroll integration: if you spend 2 to 4 hours per pay period reconciling timesheets, the integration may justify a slightly higher subscription cost. Run payroll in parallel for at least one pay period before switching.
Test the hiring module during a real hiring cycle
If you are considering Essentials or higher for the hiring features, post an actual job listing and let applications flow in during your evaluation period. The hiring module's value is best assessed with real applicants to screen, not test data. Compare the experience against your current hiring process — typically Craigslist plus email — to quantify the time savings.
Verify POS integration with your specific system
Homebase integrates with Square, Clover, Toast, Shopify, and other POS systems, but integration depth varies by provider. Verify that your specific POS integration supports the features you need — time clock through the register, sales data for labor cost tracking — before relying on it as part of your workflow. Test the integration during the free plan period.
Homebase pricing should be evaluated in the context of team size, operating complexity, and the commercial metric that makes cost rise over time.
Buyers should use this page to understand more than the headline price. The real decision usually depends on implementation scope, support level, add-on exposure, and whether the pricing model still makes sense once the team grows.
- Clarify whether cost scales by employee count, recruiter seats, payroll runs, locations, or another metric.
- Confirm what implementation, premium support, compliance, or service add-ons do to total spend.
- Model pricing against the actual team size and operating complexity expected over the next 12 months.
Is Homebase worth the price?
Homebase pricing is genuinely affordable for single-location small businesses, with a free plan that works and paid plans that scale logically. The per-location model makes it one of the cheapest options for businesses with large teams at few locations. Where the pricing breaks down is at multiple locations — the lack of volume discounts means per-location costs compound quickly and can exceed per-user competitors like When I Work and Deputy at 4+ locations. The payroll add-on is competitively priced but the All-in-One plan name misleads buyers who assume payroll is included. For single-location restaurants, retail shops, and service businesses, Homebase is the most practical all-in-one platform at this price point. For multi-location operations, run the math before committing.
Frequently asked questions about Homebase pricing
Is Homebase no longer free?
Homebase still has a free Basic plan (checked September 2026). It covers one location with up to 10 employees and includes basic scheduling, time tracking and POS integration. Past 10 employees, or for advanced scheduling, labor cost controls and HR tools, paid plans start at $30 per location per month, or $24 billed annually.
Is the Homebase free plan really free?
Yes, the Homebase Basic plan is free with no credit card required and no time limit. It covers basic scheduling, basic time tracking and POS integration for one location with up to 10 employees. It leaves out advanced scheduling, labor cost controls, onboarding and HR compliance tools, but the core scheduling and time clock keep working at no cost. Once you pass 10 employees you need a paid plan.
How much does Homebase cost per month?
Homebase charges per location per month: Basic is free (up to 10 employees), Essentials is $30, Plus is $70 and All-in-One is $120 on monthly billing. Annual billing saves 20%, bringing them to $24, $56 and $96. Paid plans cover unlimited employees at each location. Homebase Payroll is a separate add-on at $49 per month plus $6 per employee paid. For one location with 25 employees on All-in-One with payroll, the total is $319 per month on monthly billing, or $295 billed annually.
Does Homebase payroll cost extra?
Yes. Homebase Payroll is sold as an add-on on top of your plan. It costs $49 per month plus $6 per employee paid. For a 25-employee business, payroll adds $199 per month. It pulls approved timesheets from Homebase time tracking, so hours reach payroll without manual entry. Note that the 'All-in-One' plan name does not mean payroll is included.
Is Homebase per-location pricing cheaper than per-user competitors?
It depends on your employee-to-location ratio. For single-location businesses with many employees, Homebase is usually cheaper. A 40-person restaurant on All-in-One pays $120 per month ($96 billed annually); the same team on When I Work Pro with time tracking ($7 per user) would pay $280 per month. For multi-location businesses with few employees per site, per-user pricing can win. A 5-location business with 10 employees each pays $600 per month on Homebase All-in-One ($480 annual) versus $350 on When I Work Pro with time tracking.
Does Homebase offer discounts for multiple locations?
Homebase does not advertise volume discounts for multiple locations. Each location is billed at the full plan price, though annual billing cuts every plan by 20%. A business with 5 locations on All-in-One pays $600 per month on monthly billing, or $480 billed annually. Multi-location businesses should total the per-location cost and compare it with per-user tools like When I Work or Deputy before committing.
What is the difference between Homebase Plus and All-in-One?
Plus at $70 per location per month ($56 billed annually) adds an AI scheduling assistant, PTO and time-off controls, departments and permissions. All-in-One at $120 ($96 annual) adds employee onboarding with digital paperwork, labor cost management and HR and compliance tools. The $50 monthly gap ($40 on annual billing) buys onboarding, labor cost and compliance features. If you hire often and want to digitize new-hire paperwork, All-in-One usually pays for itself in admin time.